I didn’t say much after that whole mess with Mia. Just quietly slipped out the side gate of the castle, needing a breather.
I walked along the castle floors, head half-down, eyes scanning the area lazily.
That’s when I saw her again.
Blue hair. Sharp golden eyes. Standing at the far end like she was the gatekeeper of my bad day.
Like I’d insulted her ancestors or stepped on her cat or... I don’t know, maybe just existed in a radius she disapproved of.
’Now who the hell is this weirdo?’
Same girl from the orientation. I remembered her face—rank 1 in the academic exams. Some kind of genius, probably. Not the flirty, giggly kind. The icy, "I will eviscerate you in a debate and feel nothing" kind.
But then again, so was I.
This world wasn’t following the rules anymore. I wasn’t even supposed to have the element "Nothing" to begin with. So yeah, the timeline? Slightly off-script. Me being here was already an error in the code.
I held her gaze for a second longer, just to be petty.
Then turned and walked away.
I had better things to do than engage in a staring contest with Miss Ice Queen 101.
Like finding my damn dorm.
Or castle. Whatever it was.
Mia said mine was nearby. She hadn’t moved into hers yet, but told me the place would be easy to spot. Hard to miss something castle-sized, apparently.
So I exited her little palace—still annoyed by how fancy it was for a student dormitory—and followed the path down.
The breeze was nice, at least. Calm. Peaceful. Unbothered. The kind that made you question if the world actually was as dangerous as it claimed to be—or if all that chaos was just waiting for the right moment to punch you in the gut again.
Cobblestones stretched far ahead, splitting into different directions like a medieval campus layout on steroids. The buildings were all spaced out, but each looked more extravagant than the last.
I had barely walked a few hundred meters when I saw him.
White hair. White eyes. Impossibly pretty. Like he’d been carved by someone with too much time and a soft spot for tragic heroines.
He spotted me too, waving like we were old friends or something.
He approached with that textbook noble smile and extended his hand. "Hello. Nice to meet you, Cassius. I’m Leon. And congratulations on your recovery."
I stared at his hand for a second.
"Thanks," I said simply. "Heard about you."
"Oh?" He tilted his head, amused. "And what exactly did you hear?"
I shrugged. "The usual. Strong. Skilled. Prettier than most girls."
He laughed. Genuinely. "Well, that’s flattering. And you? What’s your verdict?"
I gave him a once-over. "You’re strong. And annoyingly attractive. Unfortunately, I’m immune to charm."
"Shame." He smirked. "You were heading somewhere?"
"Yeah. Looking for my dorm."
His expression brightened like a teacher about to drop a revelation. "Ah, then allow me to correct you. It’s not a dorm."
I raised a brow. "Huh?"
"It’s a castle, Cassius."
My face probably said it all.
"Yeah," he added, chuckling. "Top ten ranks get personal castles for their stay here. Though, you’ll be sharing it with another top student."
’Great,’ I thought. ’Roommates. Just what I needed.’
Then something clicked.
That blue-haired girl from earlier.
The way she stood outside Mia’s place...
’Ah. So she’s Mia’s roommate.’
Which meant I’d be sharing mine with someone else too. Probably another academic freak.
Still, the castles were big. Like, ridiculously big. If I claimed one wing and avoided eye contact, maybe we’d get along just fine.
Leon fell in step beside me, hands behind his back like some royal on his morning stroll in evening. His walk was too relaxed for someone his age. Like he knew nothing could touch him.
I cleared my throat and looked over at Leon. "You must know the location, right? Care to give me directions?"
He nodded, grinning like he’d been waiting for me to ask. "Oh, of course! Why not?"
I gave him a smile. "Great. Thanks—appreciate it."
But then he added something that instantly made me regret speaking.
"And how about we race there?" His eyes gleamed with excitement. "It’ll be a fun little game."
’Why did I even think this guy would just walk somewhere like a normal person?’
Still... making friends with Leon wasn’t a bad idea. Especially not when I knew what kind of importance he had in the grand scheme of this messed-up world.
Even if he lost in the game’s canon, he was still one of the strongest character. And changing him was the goal at the end of the day.
I nodded slowly. "Sure. But you do know you’re the only one who actually knows the way, right?"
He waved it off casually like that minor detail didn’t matter. "Don’t worry about that. Just keep running toward the biggest castle to the west. You’ll know it when you see it."
I shrugged. "Okay. If you say so."
With that, he suddenly crouched into a sprinter’s stance, fingers brushing the cobblestones.
He began counting, voice light and dramatic. "Alright then. On your mark... get set... ready..."
The moment he shouted, both of us bolted forward, feet hammering the stone path, wind whipping past our faces.
Leon surged ahead instantly, but I wasn’t far behind. I matched his speed, pushing off with strength I’d honed through hellish training.
At first, it was just raw physical prowess.
Just pure, explosive sprinting.
We zipped through the academy grounds, rushing past startled students who barely had time to get out of the way.
Their robes flared, conversations cut off mid-sentence as two blurs passed them by like ghosts in the evening wind.
It was fast. It was exhilarating.
And honestly? It was kind of fun.
But that only lasted a few seconds.
Leon looked over his shoulder at me with a competitive grin. "How about we raise the stakes? Let’s use abilities."
Before I could say anything, he whispered something under his breath—and then vanished.
Or not gone, but blurred. A streak of white and red. His figure distorted as his speed spiked drastically.
I clicked my tongue, resisting the urge to curse.
I wasn’t sure what ability he used, but it was strong. His figure darted between trees and students like a ray of moonlight bouncing across glass.
I didn’t want to use my lightning element. It would be bad to lose my memories.
But I was a competitive bitch.
I muttered under my breath, "[Flash Speed]!"
The surge was immediate.
My legs lit up with condensed mana. My body felt like a loaded arrow, released from a bow pulled to its limit.
I shot forward, kicking up sparks and wind, zipping through the crowd. My vision narrowed, my focus tunneled, my thoughts sharpened into one singular direction: Catch up.
The paved road blurred beneath me, the world rushing past like static noise.
But even with Flash Speed active... Leon was still ahead.
I gritted my teeth, pushing harder. My mana throbbed painfully at the edges, but I didn’t care. My pride was on the line. I wasn’t about to lose this dumb race just because I wanted to play it careful.
Minutes passed. Maybe seconds. Hard to tell.
Still couldn’t see him.
« Skill Flash Speed has evolved into Phantom Surge »
I blinked, surprised—but not too surprised.
’Classic DnD logic,’ I thought.
The more you use an ability, the faster it evolves. Especially if you’re pushing it past its normal limits.
Alright then. Let’s see what this new upgrade could do.
I muttered again, this time with more intent. "[Phantom Surge]!"
The change was instantaneous.
It didn’t just feel like I was fast—I became speed.
My body was no longer running. It was gliding. No friction. No resistance. Just pure, unadulterated movement.
My surroundings smeared into colors and shapes, like oil on canvas during a storm.
I looked around, catching glimpses of myself—phantoms. Echoes. Residual trails of where I’d just been a heartbeat ago.
Multiple afterimages trailed behind me, disorienting any observer and making it impossible to predict my path.
Like I was untouchable. Weightless. The wind itself.
A smirk crept onto my face.
’Okay... now we’re talking.’
With this kind of speed, Leon didn’t stand a chance.
’Time to catch up. Bitch!!’